“Many people left. Some people from the kitchen, waiters, even the administrator of the hall. I went crazy. Suddenly we could not work, there was a panic. Now somehow the situation began to normalize.” Michalis spent a black summer when key members of his staff we said goodbye to him, boarded a ship and, as he told us, went down to Io, an island that had caused a lot of “damage” this year, depriving valuable personnel from the Athenian focus.
Both in urban centers and on the islands there were thousands of vacancies. Everyone was looking for staff. On average, enterprises announced two to three vacancies between June 30 and July 15, 2022, while most of them, due to a specific problem, faced serious difficulties in operating at 100% of their production capacity.
But back to Michael. There are two restaurants in the center of Athens. One is eight years old, the other one. It was the latter that faced the summer crisis. It is known that mass tourism, especially on the most popular islands, Paros, Mykonos, Santorini, Ios, leaves very good money for catering workers. While some tipping in well-known stores may seem unrealistic, it is not. A good waiter can earn 300 euros or more per day. So it is quite tempting to leave an Athenian restaurant for two or three strong months on the island.
Why there were no problems in the oldest store of Michalis, there is another explanation. Teams that have been together for years—the youngest employee has been there for four years, he told us—are not easy to break up, especially when the entrepreneur pays them well and has a trusting relationship. It is not easy to create a valuable team of employees, but it is also not easy for an employee to find the right employer. When she finds him, she doesn’t let go easily.
Focus was ruthlessly struck. During the financial crisis, wages fell sharply. In recent years, this area has begun to recover, pay better and create opportunities for those who seek to develop. You don’t kick it lightly for random profits. Solving gaps in focus is a better paying and stable job.
Source: Kathimerini
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